Blue (or green) water may corrode pipes

Q. I have a well, and the water that comes into our toilet is blue. The water in my bathtub is also blue, and it is hard to clean. Can you tell me why we have blue water? I have copper pipes.

A. It sounds like you have acidic water — with a very low pH, although the color is generally greenish. The water is eating the copper pipes. If nothing is done about it, the copper pipes may eventually leak. You should have a water specialist test your water and recommend a treatment to bring the pH to a more normal 7. If you don’t, you may end up with a very expensive pipe replacement.